Original Parish Player takes lead role in comedic musical

Wednesday

Mar 29, 2017 at 3:15 PMMar 29, 2017 at 3:15 PM

Max Bowen mbowen@wickedlocal.com

Becca Vautour was just 10 years old when she first took the stage with the Parish Players.

Over the years, she's been in a number of shows, and this weekend, she'll join her cast mates in "Once Upon a Mattress," in the role of Princess Winnifred the Woebegone, one of the leads in the story. Vautour describes the role as a feisty, outspoken lady who doesn't always act all that ladylike.

For example, when traveling to meet Prince Dauntless the Drab, she swims a moat and climbs a castle wall, so eager is she to meet him.

"The princess is one of my dream roles," said Vautour on Monday prior to rehearsal. "I always loved this role."

Vautour said the princess is an example of breaking the more standard female roles.

"She's impulsive, definitely a fixer," said Vautour. "She wants to fix the problems."

To get into a role, Vautour said she goes beyond the lines, asking herself what the character would do in different situations outside the story.

"I try to live in her shoes a little bit," she said.

This is the 22nd production of The Parish Players, the oldest amateur theatre group in Dedham, affiliated with Dedham’s First Church and Parish, located on the corner of High and Court Streets. "Once Upon a Mattress" is a musical comedy that opened off-Broadway in May 1959, and then moved to Broadway. The play was written as an adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen classic "The Princess and the Pea."

Virginia Farentinos is the director, and this will be her second time running a play on her own. Normally, she co-directs these productions, and has also produced. She said the director’s job has a lot of moving parts, including helping the cast with lines and motivation, and making sure rehearsals go as planned.

"My role has a lot of logistics," said Farentinos. "I come up with the strategy."

Farentinos has worked with the Parish Players for some time, and said it's been a good experience. She said "Once Upon a Mattress" is a light-hearted story, with a plot to match.

"You just go along with it," she said.

Show times are 7 p.m. on Friday, March 31, and Saturday, April 1, with matinees at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2. Tickets are $16 ($10 for children 12 and under and for seniors) and are available for advance purchase from

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